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A last-minute roll of the dice paid off for Austin as a Rodrick Waters try clinched an 18-15 win over NOLA at The Gold Mine on Saturday. It was the second game of a double-header preceded by LA’s win over Toronto, and in similar fashion both teams struggled to keep hold of the ball in the slippery conditions.
Poor handling was the cause of the first scoring act of the game. NOLA went wide but the ball was spilled. The Gold players stopped, seemingly expecting a whistle, as Mack Mason ran clear in the other direction and had only one man to beat with Pele Cowley on his shoulder to finish the try. Mason’s conversion was on target and Austin were away.
Three points came off the boot of Mason at the 15-minute mark before injuries to both sides disrupted the play. NOLA lost captain Kyle Baillie to what looked like a broken nose, and then Austin subbed both locks with Michael de Waal forced to move into the engine room. In the midst of the wreckage Carl Meyer landed a penalty to leave the score 10-3 at halftime.
It would be nearly 20 minutes before either side would find success in the second half. Mason’s second penalty stretched the lead to 10 points but after a brief hydration break the Gold finally found some life. Julián Domínguez blasted over on a set move and then Joeli Tikoisuva finished in the right corner at the end of a Juan Cappiello pass.
With time winding down NOLA conceded a penalty and the Gilgronis made the most of the field position. Mason spotted room on the far left and threw up a cross kick that bounced up perfectly into the arms of a waiting Waters. The conversion was wide but time was up and Austin celebrated back-to-back wins for just the second time in their history.
Both teams will be at home next Saturday. NOLA host the New England Free Jacks in mid-afternoon with the AG’s welcoming Rugby ATL to Texas in the evening.
SCORING
NOLA 15
Tries – J. Dominguez (62’), J. Tikoisuva (72’)
Cons – C. Meyer 1/2 (63’)
Pens – C. Meyer 1/1 (30’)
AUSTIN 18
Tries – P. Cowley (5’), R. Waters (79’)
Cons – M. Mason 1/2 (6’)
Pens – M. Mason 2/2 (15’, 58’)
TEAMS
NOLA GOLD
1 Matt Harmon (17 Kevin Sullivan 47′), 2 Pat O’Toole (16 Eric Howard 47′), 3 Dino Waldren (18 Brian Nault 66′), 4 Nikola Bursic (21 Devin Short 51′), 5 Kyle Baillie (capt.) (19 Ignacio Dotti 21’), 6 Moni Tonga’uiha (20 Malcolm May 58’), 7 Andrew Guerra, 8 Cam Dolan, 9 Holden Yungert (22 Damian Stevens 45’), 10 Timothée Guillimin, 11 Julián Domínguez, 12 JP du Plessis, 13 Juan Cappiello, 14 Joeli Tikoisuva, 15 Carl Meyer
Not used: 23 Kyle Rogers
AUSTIN GILGRONIS
1 Jake Turnbull (17 Jamie Mackintosh 53′), 2 Hugh Roach (16 Mason Koch 63′), 3 Paddy Ryan (18 Mason Pedersen 47′), 4 Sebastian de Chaves (19 Reegan O’Gorman 26’), 5 Christian Ostberg (20 Dominic Akina 34’), 6 Dom Bailey, 7 Maclean Jones, 8 Michael de Waal, 9 Pele Cowley (21 Marcelo Torrealba 65′), 10 Mack Mason, 11 Conner Mooneyham, 12 Kurt Morath (22 Lui Sitama 58′), 13 Bryce Campbell (capt.), 14 Rodrick Waters, 15 Will Magie
Not used: 23 Cole Davis
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Jack Gohl (Australia)
Assistants: Allen Alongi (USA) & Saade Bou-Mikael (USA)
